Cold Land, Cold Heart
by Lord-of-Change
Summary: Morality and mercy are easy concepts to follow when there are no risks involved. But it will always come a day where it's not easy, when a person must choose; to die honorably like a hero, or to do the unthinkable and survive. So tell me this. Stranded and all alone in a cruel land inhabited by men that despise mercy and compassion, what will you choose, Raven? To die? Or to live?
1. Chapter 1: How it all Began

**Cold Land, Cold Heart**

**Chapter 1: How It All Began**

In the dead of night, cold winter winds howled through the forests of Sweden. Tall trees that defiantly stood against the wind, like they had done for countless years. Winter had its harsh grip on the land, and so nothing but snow lay like a blanket across the landscape. Far from civilization, there was naught but wildlife making a living out here. However, there was one sign of human life present; a small cottage, situated atop a small hill, with light coming from inside.

"Förbaskade väder. Hoppas det går över till imorgon," the elderly man living in said cottage crumbled to himself as he poured up a cup of coffee for himself, his faithful dog standing by his side.

"Nåväl, det är väl knappast som om jag har bråttom någonstans," he added to himself as he sipped his coffee while absentmindedly scratching his dog behind his ears, a gesture most appreciated by the furry creature. But their small moment of contentment was abruptly ended by the dog. Animals truly possessed an ability to sense danger with far more ease and swiftness than us dull humans. And it was these superior senses that alerted the dog of imminent danger and brought out a threatening growl from its throat.

"Vad är det, Luffsen? Är det någon därute?" the old man asked cautiously, having learned long ago to put faith in his animal companion. When Luffsen continued to growl and even began pacing around the cottage in agitation, the old man knew that trouble was abroad. And so, he walked over to his fireplace, nervous eyes darting towards every conceivable entrance, before he grabbed a double-barreled shotgun hanging on the wall.

A quick inspection showed that it was loaded, and so he waited with his dog at his side. Nearly five minutes passed in silence, apart from the howling winds outside, and the old man began to think that Luffsen had been wrong just this once. But the dog was still growling, and so he remained vigilant just a bit longer. Then, he heard it. Footsteps, treading softly outside his door. Barely audible over the wind, they paused just on the other side of his door.

With slow and deliberate care, the door handle was lowered, and the door slowly creaked open. The old man tensed, shotgun at the ready, as a clawed hand holding a contraption he had never seen before poked inside. But the old man guessed from its shape and the way it was held that it was a weapon. And so when its owner swung the door fully open and stepped in, the old man squeezed the trigger. Whoever the intruder was, he was thrown out of the cottage by the blast, to land somewhere out in the snow. His unmoving form was barely visible out in the darkness.

With the danger apparently over, the old man finally released a breath he had been unknowingly holding and stood back up. But his moment of relief proved to be short-lived, for the dog was still growling.

"Är det en till därute?" he asked as he peered out into the darkness outside. It proved to be something far more terrifying to the old man than a second culprit, for it was in fact the first intruder who still spooked the dog. He took a bird shot at near point blank range straight in the chest, a shot that would have killed anyone. But in defiance of that statement, he was standing back up again as if nothing was wrong with him.

"Vad i helvete!" the old man screamed in terror as his assailant walked back inside, hunched over. He instantly fired his last shot into the intruder, and he fell over again. But this time, he did not rise again.

"You're empty, mister," a dark and menacing voice suddenly spoke up behind the old man, causing him to accidentally drop his weapon in fright as he whirled around. He was met with a fist to the face that shattered his nose and sent him to the ground in a daze. Meanwhile, the dog, angered from seeing its master struck down, barked loudly and lunged at the assailant. It proved to be its undoing, as the assailant easily grabbed the dog around its neck, and snapped it in half with a single hand.

"Luffsen!" the old man screamed in anguish upon seeing his closest companion get killed. He tried to stand back up, but the assailant threw Luffsen's body straight into him, knocking him back down. Before he even knew it, the mysterious assailant was towering above him, a boot keeping him firmly pressed down on the floor.

"You probably don't understand a word I'm saying to you, but I'll let you know that your death will help me bring about the end of my enemies at last," he spoke, right before he grabbed a strangely shaped firearm from his belt and aimed it at the old man's head. The last thing he saw in life before a yellow beam ended it however, was a single cold eye glaring at him from behind a half black, half orange mask.

* * *

"Who wants tofu waffles?" those were the first words that greeted Robin when he stepped foot inside the living room at Titans Tower. And if he was to be honest with himself, he was not all that surprised to find Beast Boy and Cyborg bickering over the usual stuff at this hour, namely breakfast.

"Forget it, grass stain! That stuff barely qualifies as food in the first place! Bacon and egg, now that's a real breakfast!" the cybernetic teen argued fiercely, to the great dismay of his green little friend.

"Dude! I've been those animals! It'd be like cannibalism for me!" he protested vehemently, causing Cyborg to merely shrug his shoulders.

"Your loss," he simply said while serving himself a generous portion, purposely ignoring Beast Boy who was making exaggerated gagging gestures at his food. Seeing this little spectacle, Robin shook his head in amusement. _'I guess some things never change,'_ he thought to himself as he strode inside.

"Morning, guys," he greeted cheerfully as he made his way to the kitchen, seeking to make some breakfast to himself.

"Morning," they both greeted back before they returned to their own breakfasts. Robin soon joined the duo at the table, his own breakfast done.

"Hey, has either of you seen Raven this morning?" he asked curiously as he took a seat next to Cyborg. It was nine in the morning and yet there was no sign of her as of yet. Normally, he would have expected Raven to be one of the first to be up and about.

"She came by about an hour or so, made some herbal tea and then went back to her room. Said there was an urgent matter she needed to look into," Cyborg answered, right before he gained a sly grin on his face. "By the way, you've been in your bedroom for quite some time now, and you didn't bother to ask where Starfire was," the not so innocent observation brought an embarrassed shade of red to Robin's cheeks.

"I don't know what you're implying," Robin tried to defend, but neither Cyborg nor Beast Boy believed him.

"Uh huh, so you don't know that Starfire's been sneaking into your room in the night when she thinks everyone else is asleep?" Cyborg asked with a knowing tone, leaving Robin sputtering in abashment. It brought out gales of laughter from both Beast Boy and Cyborg.

"Dude! It's only been two months since Tokyo, and you're already going at it like rabbits!" Beast Boy managed to get out before he devolved into uncontrollable laughter again. At that moment, Robin wished he could just crawl into a hole and die. Well, he supposed he should be grateful that it was only those two making fun of him. Heaven forbid if any other Titan found out as well, he would never hear the end of it.

"Robin, what does our friends find so humorous?" the ever sweet voice of Starfire suddenly asked as the redheaded alien walked inside the living room.

"Nothing, they're just being immature," Robin hastily explained, sending a discreet glare of warning at the pair along the way. While they at least managed to contain their laughter, there was no way to hide the twinkle of mirth in their eyes. _'And they're supposed to be the role models of this city,' _Robin lamented to himself. Any other thoughts were put on hold when Starfire joined them as well, carrying… something. Honestly, none of the boys had any idea whether that was real food or whatever one could scrape up from the sewers. It sure smelled like it.

However, none of that matter to Robin, who had to endure it more than his friends since Starfire had seated herself right next to him. She was his girlfriend, and he would willingly endure any manner of torment or teasing as long as she was by his side. It may have sounded quite sappy, but Robin did not care. She was the love of his life, that was all that mattered to him.

"Robin, would you like to taste some?" Starfire suddenly asked as she held out a spoonful of whatever the hell it was she had prepared. A Tamaranian dish, no doubt. Definitively not anything healthy to eat then. In fact, Robin could have sworn that the bloody thing just moved.

"No thanks, Star. I'm sure it's delicious, but I got my own," Robin politely explained with a smile on his face, all the while fervently praying that she would relent. Thankfully, she did just that, as she merely shrugged her shoulders and ate it herself. None of the boys managed to stop a chill of revulsion from going down their spines at the sight. Small talk then followed among the four of them, with Robin and Starfire making not-so-subtle flirting with each other, spurring the two boys present to make some teasing comments at the pair's expense.

And it was at that moment that the fifth and final member of their team finally joined them. At first ignoring her friends, Raven made her way over to the kitchen with the intent of preparing another cup of herbal tea, something she felt that she really needed at this hour.

"Hey, Raven. You alright?" Robin asked curiously, prompting Raven to finally turn and fully face them. Her hood was down, so they could see her haggard face clearly. Her eyes were a bit bloodshot, there were bags under them, and her hair looked like a bird had tried to nest in it. Needless to say, her friends were instantly concerned about her wellbeing.

"Tired, and drained," she answered tiredly as she poured her tea up.

"What's happened?" Cyborg asked worriedly. Having essentially adopted the girl as his little sister, he was very concerned about her. At first, Raven was silent, obviously having an inner debate with herself, before she let out a resigned sigh.

"I've been having some problems with meditating lately. There's been some mystic disturbance in the air that keeps distracting me," she answered truthfully. While she remained calm on the outside, she was a bit worried herself about it. Meditating was her most effective way of maintaining control of her powers. Having it being disturbed so often these last few days made it a bit harder to keep it in check.

"Is it anything serious?" Robin instantly asked suspiciously. He would not claim to be very knowledgeable about the mystic arts, but he knew enough about them that they could be dangerous in the wrong hands.

"Don't know, but I'm not the only one troubled. I was contacted yesterday by Doctor Fate about this, he informed me Etrigan and Zatanna were having similar problems. Even villains such as Klarion and Circe have been reported to be acting a bit more agitated than usual," she explained in that usual monotone voice of hers. That did not alleviate Robin's worries in the least. That old paranoia of his instantly kicked in as he worried what this might entail. But, he had to concede defeat before he even got started on this one. As stated earlier, he was no expert on magic. For now, it was better to leave it to those who were experts.

But the so far tranquil morning was promptly shattered when the alarms went off in the Tower. Forgetting all about their food, the Titans all rushed over to the computer, anxious to learn what was going on this time. As usual, Robin was the one setting to work on the computer as his fingers seemed to fly over the keyboard.

"So what's going on?" Beast Boy asked worriedly. Understandable, given how the last villain they had to face was that strange creature that could turn itself into any material it touched. No matter how many times they fought and cornered it, the creature always managed to slip away.

"Someone's hacking into our systems. I can't stop them," Robin announced as he furiously typed away to no avail.

"But who is it?" Starfire wondered.

"Something tells me we're about to find out," Raven predicted ominously. No sooner had she said that before an image appeared on screen. An image of a man the Titans all loathed with utmost intensity.

"Slade," Robin snarled out with hatred burning in his eyes.

"_Good morning, Teen Titans. I hope I didn't call at a bad time," _Slade greeted, completely unaffected by the literal wave of anger flowing out of the gathered Titans. Needless to say, none of them were all that thrilled to be seeing that madman again.

"What do you want, Slade?" Robin demanded of his nemesis, glaring daggers at the one eyed man. He received a light chuckle in return.

"_Why the hostility, Robin? Am I not allowed to call an old friend to say hi?" _Slade asked mockingly with dark humor dancing in his lone eye.

"We're not friends," Robin stated bitterly, disgusted by the very notion of it. His statement only seemed to amuse Slade even further.

"_Of course not, my mistake," _he admitted in amusement, whether he meant it or not was up for debate. _"But enough chit chat, let's get down to business. Our little feud has been going on long enough, and I believe it's time we brought it to an end. I am currently in Sweden, exact locations will be sent once we're done talking, and I have with me twenty hostages which I will kill in 48 hours. Of course, should the Justice League or any of the honorary Titans appear, I'll kill all the hostages at once. I want you all to come and try to thwart me," _none of the Titans looked all that pleased at the ultimatum, Robin least of all.

"It's a trap," he stated without feeling a single doubt about whether he was right or not.

"_Without doubt, Robin. But can you really sit back and wait with innocent lives at stake?"_ Slade asked rhetorically, for they all knew the answer to that question. Heroes did not let innocents suffer the cruelty of villains.

"_Remember, 48 hours, and you five alone. I'll be waiting," _those were the parting words of Slade before he disconnected. Silence fell over the Titans, all of them lost in their own dark thought regarding the one-eyed madman that had haunted them for years. Finally, Robin brought them all back to the present when he slammed his fist into the keyboard.

"Prepare the T-ship for launch, make all the preparations needed for this. We're ending this now, one way or another,"

* * *

It was a mostly quiet affair for the team during their flight across the Atlantic Ocean, with each Titan making mental preparations for the battle to come. From Slade's challenge and Robin's order, they all knew that this would be the final battle with the madman; either Slade would finally be brought to justice, or the Teen Titans would be no more.

"We're approaching the coordinates," Cyborg announced from the pilot cockpit. The anticipation mounted among them, adrenaline was already pumping through their veins. All were ready for battle. But there was one in their midst who felt a sense of unease. Raven had felt it all day long, that which disrupted her meditation. Up until now, it had been more of a mild annoyance rather than anything dangerous. But as they drew ever closer to their goal, Raven felt its power grow stronger.

Whatever it was that had disturbed the magical community, it was somehow linked to Slade and his diabolical scheme. And this power, it truly unnerved Raven. As their path brought her ever closer to its source, Raven could feel just how wrong it was. But at the same time, it somehow felt so right to her senses, and it scared Raven more than anything else.

"You okay, Raven?" Robin suddenly asked in concern, having seen his teammate's apparent discomfort from his own cockpit.

"Yes, I'm fine," Raven answered, swallowing her discomforting and putting on a confident façade. Robin however did not look all that convinced.

"You sure? If it's something that could distract you, maybe you should…"

"Robin, I can handle it. Focus on the mission instead," Raven interrupted him. Robin hesitated for a short moment before he nodded his head in acknowledgment. But despite her reassuring words, Raven herself did not feel overly reassured. Something terrible was about to happen, she could feel it in the depths of her soul.

"We've arrived," Cyborg announced as the T-ship slowed down and hovered over a clearing. Seconds later, the ship had landed on solid ground again, the snow covered forests of Sweden surrounding them on all sides.

"Dude, didn't expect it to be this cold," Beast Boy complained as the Titans disembarked their transport.

"It's winter, what did you expect?" Raven deadpanned, relieved that she had possessed the foresight to suit up in her winter clothing.

"I know that, just thought I'd be a little warmer, that's all," Beast Boy defended himself, shivering in the cold. In the end, he simply morphed into a polar bear, solving the cold issue.

"Alright, let's move out," Robin declared, before marching resolutely into the forest. Daytime still held its sway over the land, but it only provided a small amount of help. Deep in these woods, were few to no man lived, the snow piled up in such amount that one could hide a tank in here. It did not help that each step taken led to one sinking into snow up to one's waist. Raven and Starfire were unaffected, as they merely levitated above the snow.

"Show offs," Cyborg grumbled quietly to himself as he waded through the snow, bringing out a light giggle from Starfire and a miniscule smile of amusement to Raven's lips. In the end, a formation was worked out, with Beast Boy at the front as a bear and plowing a way through the snow. Cyborg and Robin worked from behind to assist him whilst the girls kept watch. It was a slow affair, and many times were they forced to backtrack as their plowing uncovered large rocks or hidden pits in their tracks. All the while, Raven felt that malicious energy grow stronger on her senses. But there was also something else troubling her now.

"We're being watched," she said monotonously, eyes never straying from the path ahead of her. She could not see who it was, and she could not sense their presence, but she could feel their eyes upon her.

"I know," was all Robin said, sounding completely at ease despite their predicament. But the others had apparently not been as observant, as they tensed up in preparation, casting nervous looks out into the forest. Raven tried casting her soul-self out to scout, but she halted her plans before she could do it. The dark energy she felt flowing out, it was beginning to scare her. It felt too chaotic, too malicious, too much… like her father. Now that she was close enough, there was no mistaking the daemonic essence pulsating out from this chaos magic.

Raven feared what it might do to her soul were she to let to let it soar into the world without her physical body for protection. Already, she could feel the daemon in her soul desiring to suck this energy up like a sponge sucking up water. But she wrestled this almost primal urge under control. She was no daemon, she was never going to feed upon such a tainted essence.

"How far away are we?" she asked out loud, trying to sound unaffected by that which tainted the land. As she saw it, this was no longer about stopping Slade alone, but also to put an end to whatever devilry he had unleashed. And not once did Raven doubt that Slade was the true culprit.

"Not far," Cyborg answered as he glanced at the GPS built into his arm. But at that moment, all hell broke loose. Beams of yellow lasers struck out from the forests and impacted around the team. Raven reacted quickly and formed a shield around her friends, blocking the barrage of lasers coming at them.

"I can't hold it up forever," Raven warned as more and more fire slammed into her protective dome.

"Starfire, take to the air and provide suppressive fire! Cyborg, I need a barrage of missiles to the left to flush them out! Beast Boy, turn small and sneak up on them! Raven, give them a target to shoot at!" Robin ordered out in quick succession. His friends all gave quick nods of understanding before they sprang into action. Raven opened up a hole in the top of the dome for Starfire and Beast Boy to fly out of. A wild spray of starbolts then proceeded to rain down all over the area.

"Raven, now!" Cyborg shouted as his shoulder plates opened up in preparation. Raven instantly lowered her shield long enough for over a dozen rockets to soar out and explode in a cacophony of fire and noise. Once it was done, the shield came back up again to soak up more fire from their so far unseen opponent. But the plan seemed to work, for out of the snow covered trees did their attackers finally reveal themselves; Sladebots. They began advancing on their target from all sides, but those on the right flank were taken by surprise when a green mammoth literally fell out of the sky and right in their midst. Roaring in rage, this prehistoric creature proceeded to wreak havoc on the hapless bots, crushing them left and right with impunity.

Those with more distance from the animal brought out their energy guns to bring it down. They completely forgot about the airborne menace that had flushed them out, but were swiftly reminded when they began falling one by one to pinpoint starbolts to their heads and chests. But while the right flank suffered from the duos attacks, the left flank advanced uncontested. But not for long.

"Raven, drop the shield and engage those bots! Cyborg, provide fire support!" Robin quickly ordered, seconds before their protective dome disappeared and Raven took to the air again. The Sladebots spotted the danger and tried to bring it down, but a trio of aimed sonic blasts smashed the three at the front to bits and forced the remainder into cover.

"Come on, you second-rate tin cans! Show me what you got!" Cyborg roared in challenge as both his arms transformed into sonic cannons and let loose with a withering barrage. However, more Sladebots joined the fray and their combined fire almost overwhelmed Cyborg. Raven chose that moment to make her presence known from up in the treetops. With a wave of her hand, she sent a crescent-shaped blade of dark energy soaring towards the front ranks. Pinned down by Cyborg and hampered by the snow, dozens of Sladebots failed to get out of the way and were sliced in half, along with any tree that got in the blade's path as well.

But those destroyed trees were put to good use by Raven, as she encased them in her dark energy and levitated them into the air. She then proceeded to play baseball, with the Sladebots serving as balls. Those Sladebots still standing proceeded to combine fire on Raven, who merely created a shield of dark energy to protect herself. She had already done her part, for those Sladebots were now in the open with little to no cover to speak of, something Cyborg was all too happy to take advantage of as he resumed firing with increased vigor and the bots fell in droves.

Back with Beast Boy and Starfire, things were going very well. Morphing back and forth between animals, he was sowing chaos and dissent in their ranks. One minute he was a mouse scurrying over the snow, the next he was a giant bear and crushing metallic skulls with each swipe of his paws. The Sladebots tried to encircle and destroy this green menace, but they were hampered by Starfire as she dived in and out, strafing their lines with starbolts and felling them by the dozens.

Finally, the Sladebots' ranks began to thin, as they fell like wheat under the Titans' teamwork. In the end, the last Sladebot tried to make a hasty withdrawal, but was crushed to bits under a tree, courtesy of Raven.

"That's the last of them," Raven called out as she regrouped with the team.

"If that was the best Slade could throw at us, then this should be a piece of cake," Beast Boy confidently boasted, clearly believing that victory was close at hand now. Robin however, was not as confident.

"This wasn't his main attack, it was simply meant to stall us," he reveled darkly. That worked just fine to dampen the mood among his friends.

"We're wasting time here, let's move," he ordered before setting off again with his team following, leaving behind a forest area strewn with uprooted trees and mechanical body parts.

"Stay together, don't spread out too much," Robin ordered as he drew his Bo staff, for up ahead, they could finally see an opening in this so far endless forest. Cyborg's right arm transformed into a sonic cannon, Starfire's eyes began glowing green, Beast Boy turned into a wolf and Raven's hands became encased in crackling dark energy. With a quick look over his shoulder and an appreciative nod to his friends, Robin charged out of the forest, his friends hot on his heel.

"Robin, how nice of you to finally join us on this beautiful day," Slade mockingly said from where he was standing in front of a cottage with his hands clasped behind his back, giving off an aura of calmness that had no place in someone about to engage in a mortal combat with his enemies.

"Where are the hostages?" Robin demanded of his nemesis, already preparing to leap at the madman and beat him to a bloody pulp. Slade merely chuckled at him.

"Come now, Robin, can't you figure that out by yourself? After all, you were trained by Batman himself," he taunted Robin, causing the aforementioned to grit his teeth in fury. He never liked to be reminded of his old apprenticeship to the Dark Knight. During this, Raven hardly paid attention to the two bickering males. She could feel it. Whatever the hell Slade had unleashed it was so close now, its daemonic force caressing her senses. It sent chills of revulsion down her spine. But even when assailed by such vile energy, Raven was still able to note one important thing.

"There are no hostages," she revealed, drawing everyone's attention to her, "The only people I can sense in the area are us and Slade, no one else," her empathic powers sure were very useful in sensing people and their intentions, saved her the trouble of looking for someone. The revelation left the Titans dumbfounded, and brought out an exasperated sigh from Slade.

"Should have known better then to try to fool an empath," he spoke out loud, mostly speaking to himself.

"You lied simply to draw us here," Robin deduced as he glared accusingly at Slade, who looked completely untroubled by the accusation.

"Correct, and now you've walked right into my trap," he declared, right before brought his hands back into the open. One of them was grasping a knife, which he used to cut the palm of his other hand, spilling his blood on the snow beneath him. At first, nothing seemed to be happening, and so the Titans thought whatever he had tried to do had failed. But Raven realized the truth when she felt the malicious powers that permeated the air begin to grow in strength and violence. Too late did she understand what they had walked into.

"Get back!" she shouted, throwing up a shield over herself and her friends. Just in time too, because seconds later, blasphemous symbols that had been hidden beneath the snow sprang to life. The unholy energies pulsating from these symbols caused the snow to melt as multicolored fire and lightning danced through the air, slamming into Raven's protective dome like sledgehammers.

"Smart move Raven, but you're only delaying the inevitable. These symbols will not cease until you're all dead," Slade spoke smugly as he watched Raven struggle with all her might to save her friends.

"Where… did you… learn this… strong a spell?" Raven managed to ask as she strained under the relentless onslaught. As strong as she was, there was no denying that whatever was powering these symbols were far greater than her. Already she could feel her concentration slipping.

"As it turns out, serving an interdimensional daemon grants you greater boons than simple magical powers. If only you knew the wealth of knowledge in the dark arts that used to be stored in your father's realm. Alas, with him gone, those secrets will be remained lost forever. But at least I managed to memorize some of the more powerful spells and rituals," Slade revealed calmly, thoroughly enjoying the entertainment he had been provided with. The Titans on the other hand were not as entertained, as they futilely glanced around to find an escape route.

"Raven, can you get us out?" Robin asked urgently as he saw cracks beginning to form in the dome.

"No use… the moment I drop this shield… we're all dead," she managed to answer as her body began trembling from the strain. Sweat bathed her brow as she put more strength behind her shield, but the relentless assault would not give up. She could not deny it, they only had a few more minutes left alive at this rate. But it was not only a battle on the physical plane for Raven, it was also a mental fight. The accursed energies fueling this dark magic thrown at them was still flowing freely in the air, clawing at her psyche and demanding entrance.

Even now, she was struggling with all her might not to give in to temptation, for a part of her own soul was also trying to draw this power into her. It was pure torture, fighting to protect her friends while at the same time fighting her own daemonic urges, and she was rapidly approaching her breaking point.

"Please hold out, Raven, we'll figure a way out of this," Robin urged her on, seeing her strength waning in the face of this onslaught of foul sorcery. Raven barely heard him, so focused was she to maintain her dome just a little bit longer. Over the roar of chaotic sorcery, Slade's mocking laughter drifted across the area.

"Struggle all you want, it won't change the outcome. This is the end, for all of you," he spoke with twisted amusement, savoring every moment of what would soon be his greatest achievement. "At long last, the Teen Titans are no more," but Raven was not planning on giving him the satisfaction of watching their demise. No, she would never allow that monster to win. So she endured, put more strength behind her shield, even though she knew it was a losing battle. Or was it?

"It isn't over yet," she said with a strained voice, drawing Slade's attention to her.

"Your bravado will not save you, girl. You will all die here," he stated, sounding like a teacher lecturing a particularly thick-headed student.

"No, we will not, for you forgot one crucial part," Raven countered, steeling herself for what she would be forced to do. _'If I even survive this, I just know I'm going to regret it,' _she thought to herself grimly. _'But at least my friends will survive,'_ that was the one comfort she drew in this.

"Oh? And that would be?" Slade inquired curiously, and for once, Raven allowed herself to smile at him.

"This is daemonic energy you're using, and have you already forgotten what part of the family gave me my powers?" she questioned, right before she dropped her mental defenses and gorged herself upon the tainted sorcery. To a normal human, the experience would no doubt have been quite excruciating, but to someone like Raven, it felt like her power blossomed. The human in her was disgusted by this chaotic energy suddenly fueling her, but the daemon in her reveled in this power. That was, until the pain came. The blood of a daemon in her veins aside, part of her was still very much human, and that part was never meant to draw such manner of power into itself.

With newfound strength, she dissolved her dome and began draining the foul symbols of their energy, forcefully drawing it into herself. Eyes glowing a hellish red, she fought with all her might to wrestle this foreign power under her control, watched on by her awestruck friends. Taking control, even though she felt like someone had suddenly set her veins on fire, she forced the energy back to whatever hellish pit Slade had managed to drag it out from. But there was one present who was not all that pleased by the sudden turn of events, who was in fact absolutely livid. With his single eye aflame with anger at being foiled, Slade began to advance on Raven with a murderous intent, the knife still clutched in his hand.

"I will not have my victory be stolen by you, witch!" he snarled, right before he lunged at her with the intent of cutting her throat wide open. Her eyes widened in fright, for Slade was moving too fast, and she could not defend herself whilst struggling with this sorcery.

"Raven!" someone shouted in alarm, before she felt someone tackle her from behind. It was the worst thing he could have done. _'No, no, no! I can't let my concentration be broken like this!'_ she thought to herself in a panic. But the damage was already done. Her concentration was shattered, and with it, her control over the dark magic. While she was sure that the following explosion of energy would have been awe-inspiring to anyone watching, she herself only experienced a sudden and powerful agony in her head, along with a slithering voice.

"_**Well, isn't this a surprise," **_those words, spoken by undoubtedly the most insidious voice Raven had ever heard were the last things her mind registered before everything turned black for her.

* * *

Cold, that was the first sensation she experienced once her senses began to return to her. Cold and pain. Her body was telling her to stay where she was, sprawled out on some snowy terrain, to stay and wait for the pain to pass. But her mind knew better. Pain or no pain, if she stayed like this, she would die. So with great effort, she forced her eyelids open and managed to get herself up in a sitting position, letting out a moan of pain along the way.

"By Azar, it feels like I was run over by a truck," she complained as she finally managed to get herself back up on her feet. But then she felt it, the same foul energy Slade had unleashed upon them. It was all around her, it flowed through the land as if it belonged there. With increasing alarm, she realized that this was not the land that she had been in mere moments ago. Tall and imposing mountains rose on all sides, a violent wind was raging through the air. And the forest itself, covered in thick snow, but that alone could not hide the gnarled and deformed trees, no doubt warped by long exposure to whatever daemonic energy that existed here.

What manner of land was this? It was colder than any place she had ever visited, causing her to wrap her body tighter into her cloak. And the foul sorcery corrupting the land, never before had she seen something like this in her life.

"Where am I?" she asked herself in confusion, shuddering not only from the cold, but from the tainted magic that still demanded entrance into her soul. But she was not about to draw upon it again. She had already exposed herself to its touch once, and she was never doing it again.

"Damn you…" a weak voice suddenly cursed her from behind, causing Raven to whirl around wide eyed and with her hands encased in dark energy. What she found was not a pretty sight. For what she saw was Slade, impaled upon a sharp rock straight through his guts. Some of his entrails had ended up stuck on the rock, and so had been torn out of his body as gravity had apparently done its work of dragging him further down the instrument of his death. They now hung and fluttered in the cold wind like disgusting mockeries of banners. The sight made Raven nauseous, and she struggled with all her might not to throw you.

"You… ruined… everything. This was supposed to be… my hour of triumph. And then you… did this… to me," Slade managed to force out, hatred burning in his sole eye. Raven was close to running away and throwing up in a bush from this horrible sight, but she steeled her nerves and glared back at the dying madman with equal amounts of fury.

"You brought this upon yourself, Slade," she spoke with anger. It was he who had called upon these twisted powers, it was he who had tried to kill the Titans, and it was he who chose to attack her in the one moment where any distraction could prove disastrous, as it just had done. Slade meanwhile still glared at her with hate, but then his eye softened and he let out a gurgling mirthless laugh.

"I suppose… it doesn't matter now… does it? You're all alone… in this godforsaken world… and you will soon die… all alone," he said humorlessly before another fit of laughter wracked his body. He looked at her one last time, hatred and amusement mingling together in his eye.

"See you… in hell," those were his last spoken words in this life, for then his eye glazed over and he passed away to whatever hell was reserved for him. Raven meanwhile remained standing at his impaled body, still looking more than a bit queasy. But over time, her expression turned more neutral as the truth set in. As a hero, she mourned the loss of a life, having been taught that all life, even those of villains, were precious, and should never be taken by anyone. But as a person, Raven could not care less about Slade's demise. In fact, there was even a small sense of satisfaction at seeing the monster that had haunted her and her friends for so long finally paying for his sins.

"And may you finally stay there for good," Raven spoke monotonously to the corpse in front of her. But it was then that her mind finally grasped one important thing Slade had said. "You're all alone," he could not possibly mean that…? With newfound desperation, Raven swiftly brought out her communicator from her belt and tried to contact her friends.

"Robin, can you hear me? It's Raven," she called, trying to keep her voice level and plain. She was only met with static. It worried her greatly, but she was not about to give up just yet.

"Beast Boy, please answer. It's Raven, I'm alright," she called again, but was meat with the same result, nothing but static. Now she was starting to panic as her grip on her communicator hardened, as if it was her last lifeline.

"Starfire? Cyborg? Bumblebee? Herald? Kid Flash? Melvin?" she tried again and again, with every name she could think of. Each failed attempt making her voice sound more desperate and her attempts more frantic. "Anyone?" she finished with a dejected whisper. All she received was static. At that moment, it was as if all her strength had left her, as she collapsed to her knees in the deep snow, a dejected look frozen on her face. Slade had been right after all, she was alone here in this hellhole. Never before had she felt so lost and powerless. Not even when her father had invaded. Back then, she still had her friends, standing with her to the end. And with her friends by her side, she had done what she thought was impossible; she vanquished her father.

But now? She was all alone here. None of her friends were here to help here. And it was only now, standing by herself in this frozen wasteland, that Raven realized just how important her friends had become to her. With them by her side, she felt like she could do anything. But with them gone, Raven no longer felt so confident. Slowly, she could feel a tear growing in her eye, but she forced herself to hold it in. she would not break, she would not be weak now of all times. But despite telling herself that, despair still burned deeply in her soul. Standing alone here, what chances did she have of surviving?


	2. Chapter 2: Where Am I?

**Chapter 2: Where am I?**

The cruel winds howled across the twisted landscape, biting into Raven's skin despite wearing winter clothes as she struggled on through the snow. Her cloak tugged at her violently as it sought to fly away with the wind. She was cold all over, but she struggled ever onward. Where she was going, she had no idea, all she knew was that she needed to keep moving. Her foot suddenly caught on something hidden beneath the snow, and she fell over with a startled yelp.

"By Azar, why does this happen to me?" she asked herself as she struggled back up, trying to shield her face from the stinging winds. Casting her eyes around her once again, she found naught but snow and rocks, just like last time. No light existed for her in this hellish land. The sun had not been seen in a very long time, nor were there any stars visibly in the sky. How long had she been wandering again? Had it been minutes? Hours? For all she knew, it could have been days.

Whatever the case, one thing was certain, she was cold. Not to mention tired and hungry. Alas, wherever she was, it was not a place plentiful with food. As a matter of fact, she had not found anything edible. Feeling desperate, she reached out with her empathic powers, trying to find life somewhere. Just like last time, she recoiled immediately when her senses brushed against that foul energy that flowed through the land like air through lungs. It always sent chills down her spine, how this tainted daemonic power not only flowed freely here, but how the very land felt saturated with it.

It was always there, lurking just beyond her normal reach, constantly scratching at her mind's defenses. This foul power, it was like a pack of wolves to her. it prowled around her, poking and prodding for entrance, and it was driving her insane. Keeping her mental guard up was nothing new to her, but never had it been tested to such extremes, and she was paying the price for it. Ever since arriving, she had suffered such a terrible migraine from the strain of keeping this vile sorcery out of her soul.

How a place such as this could even exist was beyond her, and she cursed whatever deity or stroke of bad luck that had doomed her to be stranded here. Another strong wind almost brought Raven low, the cold slicing into her like icy knives. By Azar was she tired of this. Her legs were beginning to ache from all the walking, and she was frozen. Maybe a rest would do her good? Just for a short while, to recover her strength, and then she could keep moving. Her eyelids had begun to drop when she snapped out of it. She could not fall asleep! Not now! She would freeze to death out here. She needed shelter.

"Need to keep moving. Need to keep moving," she mumbled tiredly as she forced her stiff leg to continue moving. For a moment, she considered simply levitating, but quickly dismissed that idea. It would not be possible, not in this storm. No, she needed to stay on ground level. But she had barely taken a few steps before her boot caught on something else hidden beneath the snow, and she fell over again. But this time, she dragged with her whatever had been buried in the snow. Raven gave an annoyed groan as she untangled her legs and turned to whatever had tripped her. She promptly let out a shriek of terror and scrambled backward on all four.

It was a human body, frozen solid like an icicle and just as blue. Once that fact registered with the terrified Raven, she topped crawling away and gazed at the corpse with wide eyes. Finally, once her heart rate had slowed down again, and she had managed to swallow her fear, she began to tentatively crawl towards it. She came to a stop once within arm's reach as she beheld what lay before her with trepidation.

As suspected, he was dead, and had been for a long time. A big brute of a man who seemed to be only made of muscle. Long blonde beard grew wildly from his chin, and all he had apparently worn at the time of death was a fur cloak and pants. The cold climate must have preserved his body as it had been at the time of death. Not that it had been in a very good state then. The head was crushed and mangled, a few dangling pieces of meat was all that remained of his left leg and… something had clawed his stomach wide open and scooped out all the intestines. Raven felt like she was about to hurl then and there, and only kept her precious content down through sheer force of will.

But above her illness at seeing the state of his body, she also felt sadness. Raven was raised on Azerath, and fought with the Titans for over two years. She had grown up to learn that all life was precious. Killing was against everything she stood for, and it saddened her to see needless deaths like this. _'I may have never known you, and never will now, but you didn't deserve such a cruel fate,' _she silently mourned. Raven wanted to bury him, to at least give him that small dignity, but already knew it was pointless. The ground was most likely frozen solid.

Standing back up on her feet, she had planned to keep on walking, but something stopped her. An object strapped to the man's belt, a knife. Her pragmatic side instantly recognized the value of such a tool, and urged her to take it. Her moral side felt like it was desecrating the man.

"_It was his in life, it would feel wrong to steal it like this," _she thought_._

"_He's dead, I'm still alive. He doesn't need it, I do," _her rational side reasoned.

"_Am I going to stoop so low as to rob dead people?" _she asked in disgust. But even to herself, it did not sound as convincing.

"_I doubt a clear conscience will save me from the cold, or the hunger,"_ of course, that was the truth. She could not afford to be picky, not if she desired to live. So she bent down again and tentatively reached out towards the knife.

"I need to survive," Raven was not sure whether she was addressing herself or the corpse on that one. But in the end, she retrieved the knife, a big and sturdy one, meant to skin thick hided animals and carving met. Frost had made the blade get stuck inside its sheath, but after a few strong tugs and some small help from her sorcery, she managed to draw it. Had some rust to it, but was otherwise still highly usable. So with that inspection done, she sheathed it again, strapped it to her belt and began walking again. Where she was going, she had no idea whatsoever. All she knew that she needed to find shelter, and fast, or these accursed winds would finish what Slade had started.

She left behind her the corpse of the unknown man, who had a strange symbol carved over his heart: an eight-pointed star.

* * *

"Can't stop now, must keep moving," Raven kept telling herself that over and over as she forcefully trudged through the snow, but those words were starting to ring hollow to her. What had she achieved so far? Nothing. She had found nothing but snow-ridden wastelands as far as the eye could see. Admittedly, that was not very far, what with the nighttime and snowstorm. Despair was beginning to settle in, for she was beginning to wonder if she would ever make it. Parts of her body were already starting to grow numb, and worse would soon follow if she did not find warmth and shelter soon.

Her strength was beginning to leave her now. She was spent now, exemplified by how she collapsed to her knees in the snow. Her eyelids began to drop dangerously low again, yet she struggled to keep them up. Could not risk falling asleep now. But why keep struggling? What would that bring? A few more days of living in this frozen hellhole? Was it even worth it? Maybe it was best to just lie down and die, to get it over with. She could almost hear Robin scream and berate at her for even thinking that.

"_I climbed down to the depths of hell itself to save you, and now you're going to let a little chilly wind kill?" _if she was not so tired at that moment, and convinced that she was only imagining those words, she would have laughed at them. But she drew strength from them, bolstered her resolve to keep going. Robin would have wanted her to keep going, her friends would have wanted her to survive. And by Azar, she was going to do so!

"Get up, Raven. Come on, you lazy bastard, get up!" she spoke to herself as se forced herself back up on shaky legs.

"I will survive. No matter what, I will make it out of this!" with those words, she set off again, fighting against the winds whipping at her form. Her perseverance finally brought a reward, for after struggling on for a while longer, she was met with a most welcoming sight. A forest loomed ahead of her, its ancient trees bent and twisted in unnatural ways from the chaotic power that coursed through the land. At the moment, Raven could care less about how it looked, all that mattered was that she had found protection from the wind.

With newfound determination, she rushed towards the forest with all haste. To her great relief, the trees provided a measure of protection against the cruel winds. Raven walked deeper into the forest before she finally allowed herself to slump against a tree. Now she had definitively reached her limit, she needed to rest for a moment before continuing. Collapsing to the ground, she leaned her back against the unnaturally twisted tree and took long, deep breaths.

"I've made it here. Now what?" she asked herself. She still needed a shelter of some sort. But for the moment, she was too exhausted to care. All this running around in this inhospitable land had drained her, and she needed rest. Rest that she was unfortunately denied. For her empathic senses suddenly alerted her of danger. A prickling at the back of her mind only, but it was growing stronger. Raven was instantly back up again, to the great protests of her drained body, as her eyes wildly scanned the forest around her. She could have extended her empathic reach, but she dared not risk it, not with that vile daemonic energy flowing freely around her.

Limited to sight and hearing only, Raven finally realized how vulnerable she was. Even with her daemonic blood granting her a bit keener senses than regular humans, she was still barely able to see anything beyond a few feet. The darkness was all around, smothering her with its dark veil. Raven was not going to deny it, she was scared. She struggled to keep it under control, to not let it overwhelm her, but the signs were still there. Rapid breathing, nervously darting eyes, shaking limbs. That fear only grew worse when whatever was out there drew closer.

As the distance shrank, her empathic powers could sense them better. All she sensed was bloodlust. Whatever it was, its only interest was in killing. No, not it. Them. There were more of them, coming from all sides. They had her surrounded. Raven could hear them now, soft steps that lightly crunched the snow, heavy breathing as they sensed their next prey just waiting for them. Yet still she could not see them, and it terrified her. Then, she saw something!

A pair of eyes, shining ominously red and glaring at her murderously. But as swiftly as they had appeared, they vanished. Something suddenly moved at the edge of her vision, but was gone by the time her eyes had turned in that direction. Something growled loudly at her from behind, yet there was nothing there when she turned. A shape approached her from the side, but backed into the safe embrace of darkness when she turned to face it. She never had time to even distinguish its shape.

Fear still pumped freely through her body, but a spark of anger was beginning to grow as well. She could see it now. Whatever was out there was simply toying with her! Her anger spiked at that, and a burst of dark energy escaped her and crushed a tree, causing her to swiftly wrestle her anger back under more manageable levels. But she decided then and there that this would end now.

"Whoever you are, come out and face me! I grow tired of this game!" Raven boldly shouted into the silent night. Silence was what first greeted her challenge. In fact, the silence was worse than earlier. It was as if her words had frozen her attackers up in surprise. She waited with baited breath, and then her challenge was finally accepted. Dark shapes began to advance against from all around her, melting out of the oppressive shadows that blanketed the forests. Taking a deep and calming breath, Raven encased her hands in her signature dark energy, waiting for her foes to appear.

The eyes were the first things she made out. Blood red eyes, shining like jewels from the pits of hell itself, and there were many of them. Then, body structure became a bit more distinguishable. Whatever they were, they were not human, if judging by the way they walked on all fours. Finally, they were close enough that she could see them better. And what she saw sent chills of terror down her spine.

Raven guessed that they might have been wolves once, fierce and pride beasts that prowled the forests in packs. What she saw before her were cruel and twisted mockeries of those animals. Thick and unnaturally large muscles bulged under their skin, at least under those patches of skin that weren't covered in thick and hard fur. Bone spikes grew from the spine from top to bottom, sticking out of their skins like spear tips. Even their tails bore spikes. Horns grew from their skulls and curled forward alongside their snouts. Wide jaws opened and closed, dripping saliva to the snow and displaying rows of wicked-looking teeth.

But all of that paled in comparison to what she felt with her empathic powers. All living creatures possessed the ability to feel, no matter the size or the intelligence. But animals were generally limited only to basic survival instincts, no deeper feeling than that. These… creatures, if they could even be called that, they did not even possess that. All she felt were rage, bloodlust and a need to kill. There was nothing else to these things, nothing but an urge to kill until there was nothing else to kill. They were just empty husks of flesh, no life or purpose beyond the next kill.

That such twisted abominations even existed both disgusted and terrified Raven. What manner of cruelty could have spawned such a pitiful life form? Alas, those were questions for another time, because these creatures were in the midst of attacking her. And Raven preferred to stay alive just a bit longer, thank you very much. Reasoning or even scaring these creatures away would be pointless, so fighting was inevitable.

"Come on then," she challenged the monsters as she drew on more of her power. A risky move, for the daemonic power already flowing through this land began to gravitate towards her with increased vigor. It became a three-way battle; fighting to keep her powers under control, fighting to keep the foreign power at bay, and fighting off the monsters surrounding her. Then, one of them attacked with a giant leap, jaws wide open to clamp around her delicate neck.

Raven acted quickly and summoned a barrier of dark energy in its path, causing it to smash headfirst into it and fall to the ground in a slight daze. But that proved to be the signal for the others, as they sprang into action. A large fist of dark energy swept three of them away, but another nearly managed to jump atop Raven before she formed a barrier to shield herself. More came at her from the front, and Raven sent a crescent wave of dark energy at them. It knocked five of them over, but the four that came behind them just jumped over the wave and kept on charging.

They were nearly upon her, and so Raven phased through the tree behind her to avoid them, but found another six waiting for her already as they attacked. She sent two flying with a wave of her hand, and knocked a third unconscious with a blast of dark energy. The remaining three were too quick and too nimble, and the ones behind her were closing in, so she levitated herself into the air. The creatures temporarily stopped, confused by their prey's ability to fly. But they would not be denied, and were soon in motion again, hungering for her flesh.

Another blast of energy sent another three of the creatures into unconsciousness, but it was taking its toll on Raven. The longer the fight dragged on, the more strained her mind became from trying to fight all of its enemies at once. Already, the mild headache that had plagued her since arriving in this accursed land had grown to such levels that it felt like her head was about to split wide open. _'Can't give up now, need to endure,'_ she intoned to herself, drawing upon whatever shred of strength she could find. Which was not overly much.

But Raven was about to receive a nasty surprise from her bestial opponents. Blinded by a primal bloodlust no living being should be able to feel, they lost all sense of pack instinct and self-preservation. Since they could not reach Raven from ground level, they sought ways to level the height advantage. And so they threw themselves at the trees, scrambling with all their might to climb up them. Ebony black claws dug deep wounds into the ancient trunk while rage fueled muscles heaved their bodies upwards. They did not even wait for their fellow beasts to finish climbing before the next group launched themselves at the trees, climbing over the bodies of their own pack mates and forming a living ladder.

"By Azar, is there no way to stop them?" Raven asked herself in dismay as a blade of dark energy cut down one tree infested with these creatures, sending them tumbling back to the ground. A sudden spoke of pain in her head made her momentarily lose focus, causing her to drop in altitude. She regained concentration just in time and kept herself well above the slobbering jaw snapping at her from ground level. But unfortunately, she was now low enough that those few who managed to climb the trees were close enough. They promptly hurled themselves at Raven, who was forced to erect a dome around herself to stave off the assault.

Strained as she already was, the dome swiftly began to crack up, and so Raven forced herself higher into the air. But it was now a fight to see how long she could maintain that altitude, a struggle she was swiftly losing as the pounding in her head only grew worse. She could have killed those beasts, to bring this fight to a swift end, but it went against all her teachings. Mindless beasts or not, they were still living and breathing creatures. Killing them would be breaking a promise she had held for a lifetime. No, she was not going that far, not just yet. There was thus only one option left for her; flee.

"Azerath Metrion Zinthos!" she chanted, drawing as much of her power as she dared, and then she was off like a missile. Emerging out of the treetops, she thanked whatever deity which had decided to take pity on her that the winds had calmed down. They still bit into her clothes with their chilling grip, but now she could at least levitate safely here. So she took off as fast as she dared, leaving behind her attackers, who howled in rage at their prey getting away. Raven cared little about that at the moment, all she cared about was getting as far away from those beasts as possible.

"I just hope I can maintain this," she mumbled to herself, already feeling like her mind was close to breaking down from the strain.

* * *

After a very long time in the air, Raven found something that might prove to be her salvation. A mountain range stretching for miles in every direction. But it was primarily the cave opening at the base of the mountain that had Raven transfixed. Already strained to her limit, she swiftly descended for a landing at the cave entrance. The mental pain that had plagued her all the way proved to be too much however, and her control finally broke. She ended up crashing harshly into the snow, bouncing and rolling from the speed before finally coming to a stop.

At first, all she did was lay there like a corpse, having no strength to do differently. Then, she uttered a pained groan as she pushed herself up on all fours. Her head hurt like never before, her body felt close to giving up, yet she persisted and stood up on her two legs. With wobbly steps, she advanced into the awaiting cavern looming ahead of her. A storm was once again brewing on the horizon, but at least now she had shelter over her head. She stumbled like a half dead drunkard inside, and only managed a few feet inside before her legs gave up. With a startled cry, she fell on the heard and unforgiving ground.

No longer having the strength to stand, she crawled over to the wall and leaned her back against it, hissing in pain as her tired body protested against these movements. With nothing else to do, her cloak was wrapped like a blanket around her as she curled into a fetal position. The day had taken its toll on her, she no longer had the strength to keep going. Whether she liked it or not, she needed to stop and rest now. Not that she could have gone anywhere with the storm picking up strength just outside the cave.

Unbidden, her mind found itself wandering to her friends, and worry began to gnaw at her. Where were they? Did they miss her? Were they okay? Had her sacrifice managed to save them? Were they even at this moment searching for her? So many unanswered questions, so many horrible possibilities, and they all conspired to slowly grind away at Raven's sanity. She missed them already, she missed them so dearly. Not since her father's reign had she felt such levels of helplessness. But back then, she had her friends who stood by her the whole way, who fought for her, bled with her, and won alongside her.

But here? She was all alone. All alone, in a land so cold and twisted with foul daemonic power that it sent her stomach churning. It was only really now, after countless hours of fighting through the harsh climate, that Raven fully grasped the cruel reality. She was all alone here. Chances were, she would die alone as well. Despite how much she struggled to suppress it, a tear found its way out of her eye, then came another, and soon enough her other eye was crying as well. A sob tore its way out of her throat as more tears now freely flowed down her pale cheeks. To show such weakness was against her nature, but she could not stop herself anymore.

"Please, someone, anyone, help me," she whimpered as she buried her face in her knees, loudly crying for the first time in years. The sound of her visible weakness would forever be lost as the howling snowstorm outside drowned out all noise.

* * *

Far away from where Raven was cowering, a battle was taking place. Okay, battle may be the wrong word, more like slaughter.

"For the Dark Gods!" a Norse man shouted in his guttural tongue as he charged with twin axes held high above his head. A single swing from his opponent had his stomach wide open and his entrails spilling out on the frozen earth. That did not deter the remaining Norse marauders, big and bare-chested brutes the lot of them. Raising their own assortment of weapons, they charged headlong against their lone opponent. Moving faster than any natural human could possibly be capable of, he systematically cut them down. Each enemy was felled with but a single swing, with no retaliatory blow ever landing on him.

Finally, it grew quiet again, the slaughter was over, and only one man still breathed. No shout of joy or roar of victory came from him, he just silently watched as his enemies' bodies grew cold in the frigid climate. Then, without a sound uttered, he turned and began walking away. But without warning, he stopped. There was something, a feeling, a whisper, compelling him to go somewhere. Suddenly, saw what lay ahead, what he had been tasked to do. He did not understand it, he did not even question it, he just accepted what he now knew to be his duty.

So without another word, he sharply turned around and headed in the opposite direction from where he had been going. How he knew where to go, he neither knew nor cared, he just kept on walking to where he felt he had to walk. Somewhere ahead of him, many miles from where he was, there existed a little cave. And in that cave, was a very special girl crying.

* * *

Fire. It was all around him, burning away all traces of civilizations. Mounds of corpses that reached to the heavens were abound. Unnatural storms that sparkled in impossible colors ripped the sky asunder. Beyond the horizon, the remaining vestiges of elven, dwarven and human culture was eroded away under a relentless tide of chaos and madness. It was death and destruction on a scale far beyond what he had ever seen, at it honestly terrified him. Chaos could not have possibly grown this strong, not this fast at least. Something had gone horribly wrong, some unforeseen variable was at play here.

Then he saw it, a shape, calmly walking through the destruction, inspecting it with the same care as a gardener might tend to his garden. Without having to be told anything, he knew. He knew that this being was the cause of all this destruction. He tried to shout, to say something, but no words would leave his throat. He could only stand there, powerless as this creature continued its foul work. But it seemed like it suddenly became aware of his presence, as it swung its gaze to his. The image he saw then and there would be forever burnt into his mind, the image of four red glowing eyes glaring at him with such malevolence that it froze his blood solid.

It proved too much for him, and he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was back in his room, still seated in the lotus position he had taken when he began his meditation many hours ago. He had meant it to calm his mind, but it had done the opposite here. He was visibly sweating and breathing heavily from what he had seen. those visions, far too real and terrible to be mere dreams. There could be no denying the truth he had just witnessed.

"Something is stirring in Norsca," he murmured to himself in contemplation, when a knock sounded at his door.

"Lord Teclis, are you well?" a servant's voice asked from behind the wooden door of High Elf Lord Teclis' room. At first, he received no answer from his master, who was lost in deep thought. What could have possibly affected him so much? He was not sure he wanted to know the answer to that.

"I do not know, I honestly do not know," Teclis finally managed to answer as his eyes went out an open window in front of him, gazing out at the beautiful night sky with its hundreds of shining stars. _'The darkness is growing in the North. We must prepare, or we will all be swept aside by this fearsome tide,'_


End file.
